Who Wants to Be a Millionaire – Play It!
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire – Play It! was a Disney parks attraction based off of the popular quiz show: Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. The attraction had two locations; the first was at Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, and the other existed at Disney's California Adventure in Anaheim, California. Game information The attraction's theater was a replica of the television show's set. Every day, several sessions of the game would run, each being 25 minutes long, though they would wait for the current contestant to leave the hot seat first. The theater had 647 seats. The multiple hosts that were used for the attraction were various Disney cast members who tried to emulate U.S. primetime host Regis Philbin's hosting style, including his mannerisms. Differences from the TV version The attraction's version of the game is very similar to the version seen on television, but it also differed from it in some ways: *Contestants competed for points, not dollars, and would win a Disney collector's pin for each question they get correct, though they would lose the pins they won from down to the last milestone if they answered a question incorrectly. *Fastest Fingers were played among the entire audience; the ten contestant row seats had nothing special other than the screens, which showed a video display of the camera work. Access to those seats were granted to guests in several ways. Sometimes, they chose the guests randomly, quizzed them while they were waiting in the queue, or the guests could just simply ask a cast member. *Each contestant had time limits to answer each question. They had 15 seconds each for the first five questions, 30 seconds for questions 6 through 10, 45 seconds for questions 11 through 14, and 55 seconds for the last question. The real show, however, did have time limits from 2008-2010. *Audience members could play along with the contestant, and they would earn points based on how quickly they answer the questions correctly. The game would pause briefly at the 1,000 and 32,000 point levels to show the top ten scores. When the contestant's game is over, instead of another Fastest Finger question, the highest scoring audience member would take their place unless they are out of time. *There were three lifelines, two of which were used on the actual show (50:50 and Ask the Audience), but instead of Phone-a-Friend, the third lifeline was called Phone-a-Complete Stranger in which a Cast Member outside the theater would find a guest to help the contestant. Also, since the audience's answers were instantly polled, Ask the Audience is immediate. *Guests who played as hot-seat contestants were required to sign a waiver after their game, which declared the "Fair Market Value" of all prizes received and made an agreement that the guest could not play as a hot-seat contestant for the next 30 days. Those who won 1,000,000 points could not win the top prize again for the next 365 days. *Questions about Disney parks and films appeared more often. *Instead of the graphic saying: "Name: Millionaire", it would say "Total Points: 1 Million." Money Tree and Prizes Each question answered correctly would award the player a pin which had the attraction's logo and question's point value. Various prizes were awarded at milestone questions. The chart below lists the point values and prizes awarded for each question. The ones in bold are the milestone questions. In the attraction's early days, a copy of the "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" CD-ROM game would be awarded to contestants who answered the 32,000 point question. While the actual show was still in its original run, contestants who answered the Million point question on Play It! would receive a trip for two to New York City to see a taping of the show. Special Events During Disney's Hollywood Studio's Star Wars Weekends, the first two games of the day featured questions about Star Wars. The lifelines had the same function, but different names. Ask the Audience was called, "Ask the Jedi Council" and Phone-a-Complete Stranger, "Phone-a-Stormtrooper." 50:50 remained the same. During ESPN The Weekend, also in Disney's Hollywood Studios, the attraction had questions about sports and contestants got to "team up" with ESPN celebrities. The "Phone-a-Complete Stranger" lifeline was replaced with a chance to ask an ESPN expert for assistance. History Both versions of the attraction offered FASTPASS, which were available in California Adventure for the whole run, but Hollywood Studios took them down when the Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show arrived in 2005. The attraction's former sound stages at Hollywood Studios became the site of Toy Story Midway Mania!. The soundstage and attraction at California Adventure were built as a response to criticisms and low attendance the park faced when it opened in February 2001. While the building has been unused since the attraction closed in 2004, it was rumored to be used as a temporary main entrance to the park while the real one was being renovated. Now, the temporary entrance will be next to the Soarin' attraction. When the attraction in Orlando closed, most of the props from the studio were sold to a 3rd party company who sold them online. Some of these items include the audience member's keypads, fastest-finger chairs, and monitor covers. Jeff Gross announced in November 2008, when he appeared as an expert for the Ask the Expert lifeline on the actual show, that he successfully bidded for Play It!'s contestant hot seat, which sold on eBay for over $400. TV broadcasts On several occasions over three years, the attraction in Florida hosted taping for the syndicated show for later broadcast. Category:Attractions